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She urges govt to stop 'mass killing' forthwith
Accusing the government of completely destroying the environment of justice, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia on Friday said every verdict to be delivered by the International Crimes Tribunals will remain questionable, reports UNB.
"The current government in a fascist style has fully destroyed the atmosphere of justice. Any citizen oppressed by the state and the government has no scope to have justice now. It's also similarly applicable for the trial of crimes against humanity," she said.
"When the Shahbagh protesters demanded execution of all war criminals, the Prime Minister not only supported it in parliament, but also urged the judges of the tribunals to deliver their verdicts considering the demand of the demonstrators," Khaleda said slamming the Prime Minister.
She went on: "In a democratic country, such appeal is unprecedented. With this, the last hope of getting justice has been denied. Under the present circumstances, no judge of the tribunals will be able to deliver verdict or conduct trial process impartially and independently. So, any of the verdicts of the tribunals will remain questionable."
Khaleda, also the leader of the opposition, brought the allegation at a crowded press conference at her Gulshan office.
The opposition BNP arranged the press conference in the wake of violent situation in the country following the ICT-1 verdict against Jamaat leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee.
Referring to Thursday's widespread killings of common people and Jamaat-Shibir activists by law enforcers and 'ruling party cadres, Khaleda said, "It's beyond our imagination that a government can carry out genocide against its own people."
Over 40 people were killed and many more injured in widespread hartal violence across the country following the verdict of the International Crimes Tribunal-1 against Jamaat leader Delwar Hossain Sayedee on Thursday.
Earlier, on the same day, in its first judgment, the ICT-1 condemned Delwar Hossain Sayedee, nayeb-e-ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, to death for his crimes against humanity during the Liberation War 42 years ago.
"I'm dump-founded, aggrieved, shocked and I've no word to condemn and protest such incident… people are being killed by firing like birds. The government has resorted to heinous violent measures of mass killing. We had liberated the country standing against such genocide during 1971. We can't accept that any government in this independent country will resort to mass killing on any pretext," the former premier said.
Khaleda urged the government to stop such 'mass killing' forthwith, or else, she warned, the government will have to face dire consequences.
"We can't sit as silent spectators at a time when the government has resorted to genocide. I'm urging country's people to take to the streets to protest the government's anti-people activities," said Khaleda Zia.
She urged the government and the administration not to try obstruct any peaceful protest programme of people. "I say, don't fire even a single shoot. We'll build a strong resistance on the streets together with people if (govt) resorts to the path of repression and oppression further."
She also called upon the law enforcement agencies, including police, Rab and BGB, not to use their weapons indiscriminately against the people with whose money the arms were procured. "Your sacred duty is to save public life and property, not to take away their lives… I urge you to stand beside people to save their democratic and basic human rights."
Mentioning that the country is in a deep crisis, she said the whole nation has been divided. Country's majority people's religion Islam and our great independence have been brought face to face in a planned way. The people of Bangladesh are as independence-loving as religious ones. They won't tolerate any attack either on religion and or on independence."
She alleged that a quarter in the name of implementing the spirit of the liberation war is involved in spreading slanders against the Almighty Allah, Islam and the greatest prophet Mohammad (SM). "It's naturally hurt the religious sentiment of the country's majority people."
The BNP chief lamented that the government has brutally tortured and killed religious people as they took to the streets protesting the negative campaign.
She alleged that the government high-ups are inspiring such killings and torture instead of taking steps for trial and investigation of the incidents.
Apparently pointing finger at Ganajagaran Manch at Shahbagh and other parts of the country, Khaleda said the government is pampering a quarter–which is regularly spreading hatred and malice– in committing unlawful and provocative activities.
Accusing the government of putting the national security at stake by dividing the nation, she said every citizen of the country is now worried.
She claimed that the government has lost all moral grounds to remain in office by supporting the demonstrators' pressure on the trial process, pushing the nation towards conflict through dividing them and carrying out barbaric killings.
Mentioning that the country will be pushed towards a grave danger, the BNP chief said, "We demand resignation of this killer and blood-hungry government immediately."
Khaleda reiterated that her party wants the trial of those committed crimes against humanity. "But the trial has to be transparent maintaining national-international standard. We are not in favour of making political gains in the name of the trial."
Question has been raised against the trial and its law, she said adding, "We repeatedly warned that questionable trial won't help unite the nation; it'll rather divide it. A national consensus is required in this regard. But the government didn't pay heed to us. Instead, those who advocated for removing the loopholes of the trial process, the government branded them as anti-liberation forces."
She accused the government of attacking the minority communities in a planned way with an aim to destroy the persisting religious harmony and divert people's movement to a different direction.
Suggesting the government refrain from such suicidal conspiracy, Khaleda urged the country's people to remain alert so that no one can destroy the religious harmony.
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